Sun in Your Eyes
by horrendoushaddock
Summary: Oneshot. Maybe he should have seen this coming, and stopped himself from falling head over heels in love with the princess.


**A/N:** commission for mogadeer on tumblr, who wanted Varian pining after Rapunzel.

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**Sun in Your eyes**

If Varian has to pick a starting point, the dungeon is as good a place as any.

Even though Rapunzel had knowledge of everything he had done and everything he had planned on doing, not only to her but to her entire kingdom, she had somehow found it in herself to forgive him. She hadn't had to sit there and listen to him gripe about his situation - one that, ultimately and no matter how he wanted to paint it before, was his own fault - but, she did. She listened to him, and she talked him through it. She had even seemed to understand where he had been coming from in that moment. The way she smiled at him, just before Eugene and Lance picked the cell's lock, had been so kind and genuine, too. That smile alone had been one of the most refreshing sights he had seen in a long time.

What really did it though, what really drove that first nail into the coffin, was the way she took his hands in hers when she said they needed him.

Being willing to sacrifice herself in his place didn't help the cause any, either.

And then, of all things, and after so much time had passed, she kept her promise. She had freed his father from the amber, and that was all he could have ever asked for.

He had originally thought the fluttering inside his chest had been adrenaline. Which, really, would have made sense given the day's plethora of events. But days, even weeks later, those butterflies seemed to have made a home inside his ribcage, excited into flight again at the very thought of her.

The whole incident with the red rocks only seemed to make things worse. Had he actually slipped up and called her wondrous and magical? That would have been bad, had she not, in turn, said he was anything but ordinary. It had just been an off the cuff compliment, he knew that, but his heart had not been willing to listen to reason then.

It wasn't willing to listen to reason now, either.

Days have passed since the red rocks were taken care of, but that doesn't put an end to his nightmares. He's been having nightmares of similar sorts for months now; quelling the rock's magic wouldn't have put an end to that. He sleeps restlessly, and he dreams of amber. He dreams of Quirin already encased, but Rapunzel is there, too. She smiles at him, warm and kind and reassuring, and tosses her hair over the amber. Before she can start the incantation though, the amber begins to spread again, encasing her hair.

She cries out as she tries to pull the unbreakable strands free, and Varian can only watch as the amber climbs her hair, finds her hands, and starts to surround her. It doesn't take very long at all before she's completely encased, too.

He pounds his fists against the rock, and wakes up screaming Rapunzel's name.

He sits bolt upright in his bed, pressing his face into his palm while he tries to calm himself. He knows it was just a nightmare, almost no different than the ones he's had countless times before.

Almost.

Rapunzel has never been in his nightmares before, at least not like this. Seeing her in that situation, frozen in distress because of him, had made his blood run cold. A new sort of terror had shot through him at the mere thought of losing her, leaving him dizzied and with frantic butterflies frantically rattling their cage of bone.

Maybe, he thinks, this crush is getting out of hand. He never had dreams like this about Cassandra, or even Eugene. Those dreams had been very different, the sort one would expect from a teenager with an eye on someone older and unattainable. He never thought twice about those dreams.

But this one…

Something about it was different. There was something so very raw and real, clawing at his chest as that amber had taken her from him. Something so big that it felt as though it could have burst right through him.

And then it dawns on him, and his heart swells and sinks all at once.

He's never been one to put any reigns on his emotions, but at some point he thinks maybe he should have seen this coming, and stopped himself from falling head over heels in love with the princess.

Like Eugene and like Cassandra, he tells himself, it will pass. He will grow up and out of it and move on. He has to.

Getting to that point, however, is easier said than done. Especially when he's foolishly impulsive, and still trying so desperately to be her friend. It's a flawed sort of logic that compels him to seek her out, flowers in hand, and with the intention of letting her know how he feels. He doesn't expect anything to come of it, but if he at least lets her know, maybe some of this weight will be taken from his shoulders.

And, of course, when he does find her, she's hand in hand with Eugene. From where Varian stands, momentarily unnoticed, he watches them. They look good together, and despite all of the hardships they're currently facing (some of which are his fault), they look happy. A stranger would never know of their personal distresses.

The scene unfolding before him is storybook-esque, perfect in a cliche sort of way. The princess and her rogue consort, strolling hand in hand through her kingdom, smiling and laughing. It's bittersweet to behold, really.

"Hair-Stripe!" Eugene calls to him suddenly, and his grip on the flowers tightens. It somehow hadn't occurred to him that standing about in open may have gotten him noticed sooner rather than later. The least he can do is try to hide the flowers behind his back, but he knows they've already been spotted.

His free hand comes up to rub at the back of his neck as the couple comes closer. "Oh, hey."

"Varian," Rapunzel practically cooes his name as she peers around him to the bouquet of flowers. The way she says it sends a shameful little shiver up his spine. "Who are the flowers for?"

"Flowers?" he repeats, and then brings the bouquet out into the open. He stares down at it, and the collection of daisies, lilies, and rampion stares back at him. "Oh!" A weak, nervous sort of laugh. "Flowers. Right."

His heart thuds anxiously inside his chest, and his throat feels as though it's never been anything but dry before.

He looks away from the flowers and to her face, and she's smiling at him, waiting patiently for his answer. He can't help but smile back, even if it's a little uneasy and crooked.

"They're uh… They're actually for you, Rapunzel."

"Aw, Varian!" Rapunzel cooes again, and she reaches for the bouquet just as he starts to hand them over. Her fingers brush his, and even through his glove, the touch feels suddenly electric. "That's so sweet of you."

"What's the occasion?" Eugene asks, eyebrow raised and a grin tugging at his lips.

"Oh - n-no occasion," Varian says. "I just… "

He wants to think this would have been easier if Eugene hadn't been there, but he doesn't have a whole lot of time to weigh that option. Because Eugene is there, and one hand is on Rapunzel's hip, and the two of them are waiting on the rest of what he has to say.

"I just, you know, wanted to say that… "

Varian sighs softly, and forces a weak smile for the two of them.

"I wanted to thank you, properly, for everything." He makes a vague gesture with one hand, and then decidedly reaches for Rapunzel's free hand. He squeezes gently.

"You're my best friend," he says, and it's the closest to 'I love you' as he'll ever get.


End file.
